Episode 18: Mike Sager
Mike Sager, writer-at-large for Esquire and founder of The Sager Group, interviewed by Max Linsky.
“I was instilled with this thing by my parents who loved me — they fucked me up plenty but they loved the shit out of me — where I can go with people who are different and I don’t feel bad about myself. I’ve had 13-year-old pit-bull fighting kids shame me horribly…throw pebbles at my head, and it doesn’t bother me. Because when I’m a reporter, I’m not me. I’m just there to get the job done and learn stuff. I don’t take it personally. Plus, I know I’m going to get the last word.”
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Show notes and links:
- Sager’s latest collection: The Someone You’re Not
- The Sager Group’s first anthology: Next Wave: America’s New Generation of Great Literary Journalists (Featuring Justin Heckert, Pamela Colloff, Chris Jones and more)
- “The Devil and John Holmes” (Rolling Stone • May 1989)
- “The Man Who Never Was” (Esquire • May 2009)
National Magazine Award-winning profile of Todd Marinovich. - “Last Tango in Tahiti” (Washington Post • July 1987)
Searching for Marlon Brando. - “A Day at Gore Vidal’s Place” (Esquire • May 2008)
- thesagergroup.net
- @therealsager
- Sager on Longform